New Zealand Story, The
Reviews Summary Amiga Format Issue 1 Review by Andy Smith The Japanese have some wacky ideas when it comes to coin-ops: take Bubble Bobble, the tale of two bubble-blowing brontosauruses that went down a storm in the arcades and converted very successfully to the computer. Another very wacky idea is to have a little yellow Kiwi, complete with white and blue shoes, running around rescuing chums that have been captured and locked in cages by a bad ol' walrus. Still, it worked in the arcades and now, thanks to Ocean, every Amiga owner has the chance to play this enchanting game at home. In case you hadn't guessed already, you control the yellow bundle of fluff in this oh-so-cutesy platform game that's not a million miles away from Bubble Bobble and Super Mario Bros.. The action's all viewed in two dimensions, and there are five levels to play through, each level made up of four sub-levels with the fourth sublevel guarded by an end-of-level nasty that needs destroying before you can progress. Again as if you'd not guessed, the sub-levels are guarded by a bunch of... well, you can't really call them nasties, because they appear to be teddy bears and snails! But contact with them will cause you to lose one of an initial three lives. For self-defence you're armed with a small bow, from which to fire arrows at the baddies (a bow and arrow? Well, you might have known, really). There are also other weapons, including bombs and lasers, to be obtained by shooting certain baddies: most baddies simply turn into juicy pieces of fruit, which are collected for bonus points. Some baddies fire back, though, so keep on your toes to dodge their shots. As well as the baddies, there are objects in the scenery that can kill you, such as spikes on the floor that must be jumped over. The levels (and sub-levels) get progressively harder and puzzles start creeping in: for example, on sub-level three your chum is caged on the right side of the level but there's no obvious way of getting to him. Until you realise that with careful timing you can shoot the teddy bears that float around without popping the balloons they float on, then hop onto an empty balloon and guide it over the top. But the bears can pop your balloon and tumble you towards the ground, so beware! Another problem is the time limit: hang around on a screen too long and a big 'hurry up!' notice comes on. Ignore this warning, and a small Time Devil appears and prongs you with his trident, thus removing one of your lives. New Zealand Story is incredibly cute, and at first you'll think you're far too old to be playing such a game. But you're not. This is an incredibly addictive game, and the difficulty tuning has been set just right, increasing your determination to survive to the end of each and every level. Ocean have taken a great coin-op and produced a wonderfully good conversion, which you will no doubt find yourself booting up time and again. GRAPHICS AND SOUND Take big, colourful cartoon sprites that are beautifully drawn and wonderfully animated, add backgrounds that are highly, colourful and then jolly tunes that play throughout, and you end up with a great-looking and great-sounding game that happens to be immensely playable too. Features Tips New Zealand Story New Zealand Story New Zealand Story New Zealand Story New Zealand Story New Zealand Story New Zealand Story